Youth 4 rural: Revitalise rural areas by promoting the ecological transition

Youth 4 rural is an ambitious project that combines a number of major objectives: revitalising rural areas, encouraging local commerce while providing a framework for young people to get involved and take responsibility.

Young people are the key players when it comes to sustainable development and ecological transition, and they are a particularly involved part of the population, especially as they have to prepare themselves to deal with climate change. This project offers them the opportunity to have a space in which they can get involved in practical ways, while at the same time developing their skills, particularly entrepreneurial skills. It's a way of giving them a sense of responsibility through concrete action, enabling them to become actors for change in their communities.

Encouraging young people to develop their skills is a major challenge, particularly in rural areas where they are all too often forgotten. This will enable them to get directly involved in local life. It's a way of giving them the chance to take part in a place they know, to contribute to change without having to leave their home town to find work, particularly in the city. At the same time, it helps to reduce inequalities between urban and rural areas by promoting the local economy in rural areas and ensuring a sustainable future and economic prosperity.

What's more, we all know the positive impact of km0 and seasonal foods. By favouring this type of consumption, we can drastically reduce our ecological footprint and pollution, while promoting local trade. It's a way of avoiding importing products from abroad, which represents an ecological disaster because of the kilometres travelled and the means of transport used to make these journeys. 

This project also helps to strengthen social cohesion by enabling local residents to meet up and develop projects together that will help to enhance their local area. What's more, knowing where the food we buy comes from ensures that we consume more responsibly.

Indeed, it is a major element in enabling young people to commit themselves to a more sustainable future, while in return having a framework in which to learn to become entrepreneurs and agents of change in rural areas.     

Amélie FOURNIER